On the same day that it published another bombshell about Russian hacking of the Vermont power grid that turned out to be fake news, the Washington Post Editorial Board questioned Donald Trump’s loyalty to America. In a shameful screed that conjures dark visions of McCarthy era witch hunts, the WAPO suggested that there is something very troubling about Trump’s not falling into line over the fishy story of Russian election hacking.

The Washington Post on Friday raised “darker suspicions” about the President-elect Donald Trump’s lack of concern for Russian interference in the U.S. election.

The White House on Thursday expelled 35 Russian officials and announced an array of new sanctions for what the U.S. intelligence agencies are calling a deliberate hacking campaign, orchestrated by Moscow, for the purposes of interfering in the presidential election.

The Post’s editorial board questioned Trump’s praise of Putin after the Russian leader decided not to take countermeasures against the U.S.

“The president-elect’s dismissive response only deepens unanswered questions about his ties to Russia in the past and his plans for cooperation with Vladi­mir Putin,” the newspaper wrote.

“For his part, Mr. Putin seems to be eagerly anticipating the Trump presidency. On Friday, he promised to withhold retaliatory sanctions, clearly hoping the new Trump administration will nullify Mr. Obama’s acts,” the Post added.

“Why is Mr. Trump so dismissive of Russia’s dangerous behavior? Some say it is his lack of experience in foreign policy, or an oft-stated admiration for strongmen, or naivete about Russian intentions. But darker suspicions persist.”

The editorial concluded by connecting the president-elect’s “odd behavior” toward Russia with his lack of transparency when it comes to his business empire.

“Are there loans or deals with Russian businesses or the state that were concealed during the campaign? Are there hidden communications with Mr. Putin or his representatives?” The newspaper speculated.

“We would be thrilled to see all the doubts dispelled, but Mr. Trump’s odd behavior in the face of a clear threat from Russia, matched by Mr. Putin’s evident enthusiasm for the president-elect, cannot be easily explained.”

That is just about as slimy as it gets when it comes to yellow journalism and floating innuendo about sinister intent by Trump-Putin. It comes very close to the thoroughly debunked fake news piece that was written by Slate’s Franklin Foer about Trump’s secret server that was communicating with a Russian bank. The WAPO and other leftist propaganda organs no longer need to even bother with pretending to be honest given the fanaticism of liberals after Hillary’s loss so they don’t.

But is there a simpler explanation for the Washington Post’s raging hard-on for Trump? Like the potential for Trump’s Justice Department to hit WAPO owner Jeff Bezos’ Amazon.com with antitrust action? There is also the matter of that $600 million contract that Bezos’ Amazon has entered into with the CIA which has been leaking information to the press like sieve in order to sabotage Trump.

There is a monumental conflict of interest problem here between Bezos, the CIA and the WAPO and it is getting zero attention.

As the controversy over fake news rages on, a notable conflict of interest exists concerning one of the media outlets that has driven much of the conversation.

While much of the blame for so-called “fake news” has been placed on smaller, more independent publications, it may turn out that at least some of responsibility actually belongs to the more established media outlets.

As a leading American publication, the Washington Post has earned an air of legitimacy that many newer, less well-known publications do not yet possess. However, in this new era of “fake news,” the conflict of interest that was created when the ownership of the Washington Post changed hands may call into question the credibility of even one of America’s most distinguished publications.

In 2013, the Washington Post was purchased by Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon. That same year, Amazon also obtained a CIA contract worth $600 million. At that time, The Nation pointed out the conflict of interest that these dealings posed.

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However, despite the journalistic condemnation, the Washington Post continued to operate without clearly addressing the conflict presented by Bezos’ financial interests at Amazon being intertwined with the interests of the CIA. Shortly after the CIA contract was finalized, Amazon issued a statement, saying simply, “We look forward to a successful relationship with the CIA.”

Bezos’ conflict of interest is once again newsworthy after the Washington Post used highly questionable sources to promote identifying and blacklisting “fake news” sites in late November. Using a sensationalized headline claiming involvement from Russia, this story relied on unnamed analysts from a shadowy group known as PropOrNot to cast suspicion for the influx of “fake news” on Russia.

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Several weeks after publishing the questionable expose on “fake news” from Russia, the Washington Post again created controversy in early December by alleging interference from Russia in the U.S. presidential election. Although according to the Inquisitr, the source of the email leaks that plagued the Democratic party this year remains unclear, the Washington Post nonetheless published a bombshell report accusing Russia of meddling in the U.S. presidential election. That article cited an anonymous CIA source with knowledge of a secret assessment that allegedly confirmed Russia had actively worked to help Trump win the White House. While no substantiating evidence of this accusation was given, the unknown source was adamant that Russia was to blame.

Now that the Washington Post has published multiple stories based on unnamed sources that seem intent on painting Russia as a villain, it’s worth questioning where the fake news is actually coming from. When the owner of the Washington Post also owns the majority of Amazon, at a minimum, it should be disclosed to the public that Amazon earns massive profits directly from the CIA, and Bezos has a financial incentive to keep his clients happy.

For the Washington Post to promote the conversation about fake news using incendiary, unsubstantiated articles targeting Russia, while also failing to be upfront about their own conflict of interest, perfectly exemplifies the manufactured fake news crisis. If a well-known, highly-respected media outlet doesn’t hold itself to this very basic standard of journalism, we shouldn’t be surprised when some people become unable to recognize fake news, or when others begin turning to alternate news sources in their quest to find the truth.

Trump is on record as saying that Amazon has a “huge antitrust problem” and now that he has won the election it doesn’t take a conspiracy theorist to put two and two together as to possible reasons for the WAPO’s insane attacks on the President-elect. As far as the CIA goes, there is a long history of agency collaboration with the WAPO – see Operation Mockingbird.

So there you have it and if we lived in a country that had a functional media the question about the massive conflict of interest that exists between Bezos and the WAPO would be the issue rather than the endless smear pieces and fake news fairy tales that his paper continues to mass produce. Bezos stands to lose a boatload of bucks if the Trump administration chooses to enforce the antitrust laws or quash the Amazon-CIA deal and blaming the Russians has become a perfect ruse for leftists looking to stifle challenges to the status quo.

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Donn Marten is a libertarian critic of the corrupt establishment as well as a patriot seeking to do my part to make America great again. Donn has a unique insight and has written at such sites as Titanic Brass, Downtrend, The Federalist Papers Project, OpEd News, RINF and others.